You And I Aren't So Different
by iOrichalcos
Summary: When an epidemic and famine strike Egypt, poor Malik is left all alone in the world, that is until he meets a certain thief. Can love spark between these two? What happens when they both learn that their not so different? MalikxThief King Bakura 4 ever!


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Here's my second story! I'm still working on my first one but I couldn't wait to start another story, so here it is. It's about Malik (he's the narrator) and Thief King Bakura. MalikxBakura 4 ever!!!

Enjoy:D

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Disclaimer: Sigh. Do we have to explain? Valon'n'MarikLover doesn't own Yugioh. If she did then Malik, Valon, and Thief King Bakura would be the main characters. So don't sue her (batting eyelashes) pretty please.

Please Note: All the bold words are what Malik is saying.

Now on with the story!!!!

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**Are you sure you want to hear my story? I suppose I can tell it to you if you really want to hear it. After all I am sitting in a cell in the thief's hideout with nothing to do. So here it goes. It all started when the famine struck Egypt….. **

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"Malik, come here!" my sister Ishizu called, though weakly for she was currently sick.

I was reluctant to leave the warm sun the glowed above all of Egypt to enter our cold home underground, but got up anyways. My sister probably needed something.

As I got up my stomach growled. I was starving. Actually, everybody in Egypt was. A famine had struck Egypt a little bit more than year ago. Even though I was only a small boy of sixteen, even I knew that everyday there was less food on the table than the day before.

I quickly opened the latched that lead to my underground home. I shivered as the cold, damp air made contact with my skin. Though the temperature was nothing compared to the heavy scent that hung in the air. It was the smell death.

"Ishizu!" I called, fearing the worst. _Maybe she was dying!_ I thought, very frightened. I quickly rushed to her side, and to my relief found that she was alright, though a bit pale. She was sobbing uncontrollably. It was a frightening sight for me to see. Ishizu, the calm one, the older one, the one in control was _sobbing._ Never in my young life had I seen her in this state. It was maybe one of the scariest sights I'd ever witnessed.

"It's Odion. He's worse than last night. The fever is refusing to recede," Ishizu choked out. "What are we suppose to do without him?" she looked at me, eyes glistening with tears.

I strode quickly to the bed that Odion was currently laying on. I gasped. The sight was horrible. We Egyptians all had tanned skin and always would, no matter how much we avoided the sun. But now Odion's tan was completely gone, replaced by a horrible ghostly shade. _How could this happen to him? He was only inside for two days!_ I thought bitterly, trying to hold back the tears that were currently curving down my cheek.

I touched Odion's forehead, quickly pulling back when I felt the heat that was radiating from him. It was unimaginably hot; the heat could be felt from an inch away. I backed up in disbelief. _How could this happen to you? _I questioned angrily in mind. _What would we do without you? You can't leave us! You promised to stay by our sides until the very end! _But then I realized that Odion had kept his promise. He was by our side, wasn't he? But now it was the end, for him, and he was still with us.

But I still did not know what would happen to us. After our parents had died Odion had taken care of us like an older brother. When we were hurt we always went to Odion. Who could we go to now? Pushing those terrible thoughts away I turned back to Ishizu. She was still sobbing uncontrollably.

"Odion will be alright. I promise you," I said confidently, which was definitely not how I felt on the inside.

"Really?" asked Ishizu. She seemed like a five year old now, completely helpless, willing to believe anything.

"Yeah," I said reassuringly.

"What about those horrible spots covering Odion's skin?" questioned Ishizu. For the first time I became of white patches covering Odion's face and body. I shuddered. Surely those were not good, right?

"Oh, those. Their just, um, signs that he's healing. Yeah, that's it," I was now trying to reassure myself as well as well as Ishizu.

Ishizu just nodded. I wasn't sure whether she believed me or not, probably not. I began feeling uncomfortable. I noticed that Ishizu was trying to cover something on her arm. We had to get out of here at least for a while.

I cast one hopeful glance toward Odion. He was still breathing, however labored it was. I said, "Odion is sure to get better. In fact he probably just needs some more rest. I let's go outside, I'm sure that when we come back he'll be awake," _Oh dear Ra please let him be awake, please._

I quickly wiped away the tear that was forming at the corner of my lavender eyes, before turning to face Ishizu. I realized that she had a blank expression on her face. Suddenly as if an adult for a second she turned toward the door and unlatched it. "Let's get some fresh air. Come, Malik."

I realized the pressure Odion must have felt after my parents had died. Having to make life changing decisions, always having to act calm to keep Ishizu and I reassured. Ishizu had just taken charge herself and I, I was gladly accepting her leadership. Glad to have someone else make the decisions, glad to not have the pressure everyday knowing that you had the life of another person contained in your hands. I glanced one last time at Odion's pained face. His brow was furrowed as if concentrating. Concentrating on staying alive, that is. I wished I could've offered him something other than thin vegetable soup to eat so that he could regain his strength. But the famine enabled that from happening.

I whispered one final time to him, "Thank you, dear brother,"

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The air outside was cool and pleasant. It was a day I would've enjoyed swimming with Ishizu and Odion, but of coarse I couldn't, not with Odion so near death's door and Ishizu sick. But I soon heard an ear piercing scream and then loud sobs from our neighbor's house.

I couldn't have imagined it because Ishizu looked up too. I climbed up onto our tree and pulled Ishizu up.

"No! Josia! Josia!" screamed Josia's mother. She was hugging Josia's limp body and was sobbing. I shuddered. Josia and I were best friends. He was always strong and one of the cities best fighters, after me (not to brag of coarse), actually we had been playing in the stream just yesterday. I was devastated. But I soon noticed a detail that shattered my heart. Josia's body was covered in white patches, identical to those that were on Odion.

"No….," I breathed. Instantly my hopes of Odion healing were gone, brushed away like an unwanted object. No that was not how I felt; my hopes were _torn _away from me. Though I was no longer a child, I couldn't help myself. I began to cry, burrowing me face into Ishizu's dress.

The woman kneeled down and looked up at the heavens and cried, "Ra, why? Why me?! Why Egypt? What have we done to deserve this curse?! First the famine and now this, this epidemic! All of Egypt will die; never again will it be in its glory!! Curse the Pharoh!! Curse all the thieves! All because of those damned thieves! They brought this disease with them; they are responsible for what Eygpt is now!!!!" Suddenly a beam of lightening come down from the heavens and struck Josia's Mother. She went limp and fell next to her son.

Suddenly I felt Ishizu go tense around me. She whispered more to herself than to I, "Mother, Father I will keep my promise to protecting Malik, even if it's the last thing I do,"

Ishizu then jumped of the tree, pulling me with her. She then said gravely, "Malik, I have a mission for you. Please go to the nearest town and get some food from there. We are hungry,"

Had she gone mad? All of Egypt was hungry. There was no food anywhere. I started to protest. "But,"

"Go Malik!" She bellowed.

I was shocked. I'd never seen Ishizu this angry. What she was angry at I had no clue, and I would never know. I nodded and ran, tears streaming, but I ran. I had no clue then what Ishizu's true mission was then.

I thought I was hallucinating when I thought I heard Ishizu whisper, "Ra protect him, please,"

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I turned around. Ishizu was just a dot now. She turned around and climbed down the stairs to our underground home.

Later I would learn that it was the final resting place for herself and Odion.

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I slowed down my running pace to a fast walk. After an hour or so of running I had reached the nearby city.

When I reached the city gates though, I stopped. A scent clung onto the air, making it thick and hard to breathe. It was the smell of death.

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"Impossible," I breathed, not wanting to believe what I was seeing.

It was eerie when I'd first entered the city. No one was guarding the city gates, no children playing, and no signs of life what so ever. A smell that was beginning to become all too familiar was all that greeted me.

Death.

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I ran towards my own city. No daring to look back. Tears were streaming down my face like rivers. How many people had I seen dead? How many children would never experience life to its fullest?

Most people were huddled together in lifeless groups, protecting each other, or trying to at least. _As if trying to protect each other from death, _I thought bitterly. I shuddered; these people had no one now. Even if Odion wasn't going to make it, I would still have Ishizu.

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I was eager to get home but was exhausted from crying. I dared not rest near the city in fear of catching the epidemic. So I walked about a mile away from the city and settled down.

Soon my mind drifted of, dreaming of when the epidemic was over how Ishizu and I would spend the summer days flying kites and how Odion would be well again, watching us play in the warm sunlight.

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**Oh the irony! I never knew I could be so wrong in one day. So, how do you like my story so far? Enough tragedy? Enough sadness? Well you and I aren't so different. We're both still stuck in a filthy cell of a damn thief that caused Egypt all its grief and these last few pitiful hours in this hell of a place could be our last. Well let me tell you what happens next…. **

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Dust was the only thing that greeted me when I arrived home. I glanced around, tears beginning to build up. Where was everybody? Did they all die? Was everyone well and celebrating somewhere?

I hoped it was the second one and skipped down the city streets, new hope restored at the thought of everyone well. _Maybe Josia didn't really die! I could've just imagined it! We can go play in the stream again and catch fish and... _I continued my mental list of what games I could play with Josia

I stopped dead in my tracks.

There was my home.

Everything was still. No one came out to greet me. Everything was as silent as it was at the other city.

I squinted, for it was getting dark. About an hour until the sun sets. There I could see people huddled together. Not breathing. Not moving. Not living.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" I screamed. I began dashing toward my home, running the last few yards in seconds.

I literally charged through the doors that lead to my underground home. Not even paying attention to the wooden splinters flying at my face.

I realized that in the last 24 hours, my life had changed faster than it had even changed in the last 16 years.

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I whimpered. "Ishizu, I'm home," I whispered, not wanting to believe what I was seeing.

I wanted to believe it was just some horrible prank. That she would just jump up any minute, laughing and I would join in too, forgetting all the bad things that had happened, brushing them away with laughter.

Several minutes went by. Ishizu still did not move.

Then I noticed something on Ishizu's arm.

It was a white patch.

A deadly white patch, identical to those on Odion, Josia, and all the villagers. A life taking patch that in the last few hours, I had learned to dread.

Suddenly it struck me. Ishizu's true mission the whole time was not to send me away, but to protect me from the disease that claimed Odion's and her own life.

Tears streamed down. I didn't care if anyone heard me, besides no one was alive anyways so who was to hear me?

And for the millionth time that day, I was again wrong.

I walked toward Ishizu and Odion, not caring for my life, wanting to curl up next to them and just let the disease take over.

I thought I heard movement from behind me, but I didn't stop. I kept on walking.

I was nearly there when suddenly someone tackled me, sending my small frame flying.

I landed hard for someone was on top of me.

My head spun. Though I looked up and saw a tanned muscular man with white hair and gleaming purple eyes.

He said, "You damn kid! Do you not want to live anymore?!"

He looked like he wasn't one to hesitate in killing someone, but my fear for death was gone.

I asked not the least bit intimidated, though gasping a bit for he was still on top of me,"Who are you?"

He merely smirked and replied, "Yours truly, the King of Thieves, Bakura,"

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**Well that explains how I met him. But I'll tell you how I'm still alive right after my nap…. **

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Please read and review to hear the next part of Malik's encounter with the Thief King :D

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**Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz……………………….**


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